Device for restoring nap to fabrics.



G. B. DEXTER. DEVICE IOR BESTURING vNAP T0 FABRICS. APPLICATION FILED JAN.10, 1910.

992,175. IPatenten May .16, 1911'.

Inez/671m?? a citizen of the United States, residing at y angleto the shanks of said teeth or in other 'State of Massachusetts, have invented new side elevation of a napping device embodying my lnventlon, showing the same operating upon a piece of fabric laid upon a sult- GEORGE E. :|JExTER,y or BRooxLINE, :ls/mssAcI-IUsE'rTs.y

DEVICE FOR RESTORING NAP TO FABRICS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 16, 1911.

Application led January 10, 1910., Serial No. 537,128.

To all whom 'it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE B. DEXTER,

Brookline, in the county of Norfolk and and useful Improvements in Devices for Restoring Nap to Fabrics7 of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in devices for napping fabrics or restoring to fabrics the nap which has been pressed down or worn ofi' in thc use of a garment, as a result of which the garment is made shiny. The object of this invention is to provide a simple but etlicient manually operatable device by means of which a new nap may be readily created on fabrics so that the appearance is practically the same as that of new fabric. i

The invention consists in the novel features of construction and in the combination and arrangement of parts set forth in the following specification and particularly pointed out in the claims thereof.

Referring to the drawing: Figure 1 is a able support. Fig. 2 is an enlarged detail sectional view of the fabric and the napping device operating thereon. F ig. 3 is an enlarged detail perspective view of one pair of teeth.

vLike numerals refer to like parts throughout the several views of the drawings.

In the drawings. 5 is a handle on which is journaled a drum 6 having on its periphery a large number of teeth 7, th'e Shanks of which are preferably substantially radial, these teeth being provided with sharp pointed portions 8 extending at an obtuse words extending` at an angle to radii of said drum passing through said points. For convenience of manufacture, the teeth 7 are made in pairs.` as shown in perspective in Fig. 3, wherein it will be seen that each pair of teeth consists of a piece of wire bent U- shaped in form and these wires are attached to the drain (i by inserting the wires in a band 9 formed of any suitable material and preferably this material is flexible, thus permitting a certain amount of lateral movement of the teeth. y

Journaled concentric with the drum 6 is a shoe 10 having two transverse portions 1l and 12 extending across the periphery of the drum on opposite sides thereof, said portions being preferably beveled or rounded upwardly on both edges, as shown.

The operation of the device is as follows: A piece of fabric 13 is placed upon a suitable support 14 and the napping device is placed upon the fabric, as shown, the user grasping the handle 5 and applying a suitable downward pressure to the drum and at thc same time moving the handle toward the left. thus rotating the drum in the direction toward which the sharp points of the teeth extend. thus rolling the drum along the fabric, as indicated by the arrows in the drawings, and during this rolling action the sharp points of the teeth successively engage and enter the fabric to a certain extent, as will be evident from an inspection of Fig. 2, it being evident that the downward pressure causes the sharpened portions of the teeth to assume an approximately horizontal posit-ion after engaging the fabric. As the device is moved across the fabric, the portion of the shoe which is in advance of the drum smooths out the fabric and the portion of the shoe which is at the rear of the drum holds the fabric down and prevents the same from being lifted by thc sharp points of the teethas the teeth recede from the plane of the fabric, it being evident that by this action sonic of the fibers of the cloth will be lifted. thus creating a nap. this resulting in the device imparting to the worn fabric the appearance of a new piece of fabric.

As is well known, many garments which have become worn and shiny in use are often discarded, but by the use of the device of my invention it is possible for the wearer of the garments, by a small expenditure of time, to create on the fabric a new nap and thereby making the appearance of the fabric practically as good as new.

Having thus described my inventiomwhat I claim and desire by Letters Patent to secure is:

1. A device for napping fabric having, in combination, a handle, a drum journalcd on said handle and having on its periphery a plurality of teeth having laterally extending sharp points. and a device journaled concentric With said drum and adapted to engage the fabric being operated upon.

Q. A device for napping fabric having.

in combination, a handle, a drum journaled 

